My Freudian Slip

Mahal na Mahal Kita Paulyn

2006-05-20T15:25:00.000-07:00

This happens every single day in my world: It is daylight here in Vista, California and my beautiful fiancee is sleeping under the Philippine early dawn. July 1st this all will begin to change. We will no longer be subject to the different time zones, conflicting schedules, or expensive long distance charges that we are now confronting. Paulyn...you are worth this and many more sacrifices, but it's time I get off my butt and catch that airplane to Manila. Passport? New one will be here before you know it.

This is my attempt to bid farewell friends, collegues, former classmates, and family. I will miss you dearly and expect that you will miss me too. Mom, Dad, Christie...love you and will miss you. Call me! There is a beautiful island by the name of Boracay and from what I understand, the golfing is superb! We will meet you there!

As for the party guys - why not! For all of those that read this and have the opinion that I am quiting school or giving up something, you haven't met my Pinay! My education will continue exactly where I left it off. In the fall, somewhere I will be sitting in a classroom or in a laboratory disecting something or preparing for an exam. That you have Paulyn to thank for...she insists.

Do not be sad or cry for me! Instead, be happy...I am!

Love to all...

Paulyn...I dedicate this update to you

2006-05-15T18:51:00.000-07:00

Just when you think that you have life figured out; just when you have learned to shut off your heart, to remain forever callous, cold, and calculated; that same life that shuts you off, that beats you up like a rag doll, throws you for another unexpected loop. (Honey, sit quietly for one moment and listen to my heart speak to yours.)

I suppose that I have been hiding from myself, my fears, and even my own potential. It is an enormous responsibilty to fully embrace your innermost dreams. So, in this my public forum, I will disclose my most profound desire; one that I've at times chased like a madman; one that I've at other times avoided like a plague. More than becoming an physician or a neuroscientist; more than aquiring the "stuff" that our modern society says the we should hoard away; even more that becoming "self-actualized" like our cognitive-behaviorists want us to believe we should be. We all want to be loved...

The casual reader might understandably ask: what does love feel like? The sharpest pain that I've ever felt is when I came to the undeniable realization that the person that I loved with all my heart and soul; that I would have defended her life with my own; that I would bave dropped everthing dear and sacred to me on her request; and that almost cost me to lose my soul, didn't love me. That very anguish nearly caused me a personal tradegy of which recovery wouldn't have been possible. Luckily I am quite resiliant; I learned from a very young age to roll with the punches, and I obviously got through it relatively unscarred. It has taken a very fruitless relationship following this devastating realization for me to come to the conclusion that no matter how far I travel down the highway of despair; I cannot chose with whom I will love. If only life were so simple. Oh how wonderful to say that tomorrow I will move to such and such town, get such and such job, and fall in love with such and such person; and I will live happily ever after following my elaborate blueprint.

Ha! Wouldn't that be nice, to plan and self-concieve the love that will stop you in your tracks. touch your soul and move your heart? My dear, dear Pinay; that would be nice. Just not possible, at least not in my world.

Being in love with someone from a foreign land is very bewildering at best. At worst, for some, it makes for an impossible scenario. Who relocates to be with the one they love? Political red tape, burocracies endless as the sun, and corruption all play an important factor in deciding who will give up their life as they know it.

To be continued my love...

New Neurons Not So Important?

2006-05-03T16:18:00.000-07:00

By Kelli WhitlockBurton
ScienceNOW Daily News
3 May 2006

Give a mouse more room and a few toys, and good things happen. New neurons sprout in the hippocampus, while spatial memory improves and anxiety eases. As tempting as it might be to tie the new neurons to the behavioral changes, a new study finds no link between them. The results contradict a popular assumption among scientists that new neurons in the hippocampus contribute to the cognitive boost that comes with a more stimulating environment.

The notion that two parts of the brain--the hippocampus and olfactory bulb--continue to produce new neurons into adulthood has been widely accepted since the late 1990s. But just what role those new cells play in cognitive function remains a mystery. Recent studies have found that animals housed in larger cages with opportunities for exercise and social interaction generate more new neurons in the hippocampus than do animals in more cramped quarters with no playmates. Scientists in the lab of Columbia University neurobiologist René Hen hoped to find the link between hippocampal neurogenesis and certain behaviors such as learning and memory that involve the hippocampus.

Hen's team zapped mice with a focused dose of radiation to halt neurogenesis in a portion of the animals' hippocampuses. They then placed half the animals in regular cages and half in enhanced environments for 6 weeks before testing their anxiety and spatial memory. To the researchers' surprise, the animals with better accommodations had improved spatial memory skills and were less anxious than mice in smaller confines, despite not having any new neurons in their hippocampuses. "We thought we would see a dependence on neurogenesis in some of the behaviors we saw in the enriched environment, but that's not what we found," says Hen, whose team published the findings online 30 April in Nature Neuroscience.

"This doesn't say that adult neurogenesis plays no role in functional changes [in the brain] associated with enriched environments, but it does highlight that neurogenesis is definitely not the whole story," says Elizabeth Gould, a neurobiologist at Princeton University. Gould points out that Hen's study examines only two specific behaviors, a limitation Hen plans to address in future work. "The challenge is to figure out which of the many hippocampal-dependent tasks are affected and which are not," Hen says.

Related sites

Read the study

A recent Science News Focus story about new neurons

My Newest Discovery

2006-05-02T14:31:00.001-07:00

A quick update first; my friend is receiving much needed assistance from friends, colleagues, and even some people she has never met before. Just reinforces my already strong belief that the human spirit is still amazingly good. Some that is...

Tau Proteins

My life as I know it has changed so incredibly much in the last year it is unbelievable. I don't usually go into a lot of self-disclosure in this forum; today I am making an exception. You could ask why...Most likely you don't care. That's okay! A little over one year ago I was living in San Jose del Pacifico, Oaxaca, in Mexico determined to live there and somehow slip off into oblivion; never to contribute, never to share myself, never to grow, never to dream again. Man oh man, how life changes sometimes?

I am in the process of preparing my transfer contracts and completing some rather boring General Education requirements to leave the inspiring grounds of Palomar College (San Marcos, CA) to head a few miles down the Pacific Coast to La Jolla, California, home to one of the finest research universities in the world, The University of California-San Diego. This is a privilege and honor reserved for some of the world's most talented minds. It is amazing that I will be there soon. Maybe even more amazing is that I am doing this at 38 years old.

What does this have to do with tau proteins? And if you are like I was, you may not even know what tau proteins are. Don't feel bad...most people don't. But they are so important to us. Read on...

Tau is a binding protein that is known most commonly as the glue that holds together the transport part of our neurons. (If you don't know what a neuron is you might just be at the wrong blog site, no offense.) Six distinct tau isoforms are readily found in the neural soma. However it seems that there is one particular isoform of tau that inappropriately interacts with a certain enzyme, glycogen synthase kinase, and a damaging hyperphosphorylation process is set into motion that many scientists postulate as being the culprit that contributes to the neural death associated with Alzheimer's disease. This is an amazingly complex process that I am just beginning to grasp, but seems that my life's pursuit is becoming just that; understanding and somehow contributing to the unraveling of this devastating disease that has already taken the life of some one I loved dearly, and is in the process of destroying another person in my family.

This disease is possibly one of the greatest challenges that faces our modern day society, with an estimated 5 million cases in the U.S. alone. It has past epidemic proportions by even the most conservative estimate. Nearly everyone I know has lost someone to Alzheimer's. Most sources agree that once you reach 85 years of age you have a 50% chance of developing AD. I recently read that as our society ages and if we reach a life expectancy of 120 years of age nearly 85% will present some form of AD. These numbers are staggering and appalling.

Dr. Steven DeKosky, my hat is off to you sir and would love to shadow you for even one day.

To all the Alzheimer's Disease Research Centers in the U.S.; especially in La Jolla, the offer is the same...I want to contribute.

To all that have read this...thank you and godspeed.

A Cry for Help

2006-04-28T19:58:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I posted the story of my friend being rescued from her 2nd story apartment in Escondido, California. Well, if you live in the San Diego Metro Area and would like to donate some much needed items to her, here's how:

Rule No. 1: No cash is necessary. I am not attempting to convince people to give any monetary donations.

Rule No. 2: If you don't have anything to give, please don't.

Lori (my friend) needs the following items.

Furniture

2 Beds (one for her and one for Aaliyah, her 3 yr old)
Sheets
Pillows
Toiletries
Clothes size 10 or 11 ladies, size 3-4T for her daughter)
Towels
And anything else you can think of.

You have my permission to call me at (760) 936-5526 or you can email me at drdavisjr@msn.com

Lori is a single mother studying American Sign Language at Palomar College in San Marcos, California. She makes a difference each day in the lives of others, let's make a difference in hers.

Dominick Polito...thank you for saving my best friend's life!!

Boycott Mexico NOW!!!

2006-04-27T20:24:00.000-07:00

Having lived in Mexico for the majority of my adult life, I was the first to jump on the bandwagon for the Guest Worker program...my opinion has changed. Early this morning, a very dear friend of mine along with her 3 year old daughter, who is also my goddaughter, came close to death at the hand of 10 illegal immigrants in Escondido, California.

Apparently, anyone can rent an apartment in California, and they don't have to abide by the rental contracts, at least not those who enter our country illegally from Mexico.

At about 3:16 am this morning a fire broke out in the apartment just below my best friend's unit. Fire department officials reported that there were candles in the kitchen of the downstairs unit. When officials arrived on the scene they found my friend leaning out of her bedroom window gasping for air. They were afraid she was going to jump. She wasn't...she just needed air for her and her baby.

This comes just days before the Latino community is planning an economic boycott here in the United States and companies run by American concerns in Mexico. They hope to strongarm the American government with these ill-advised tactics.

How many Americans are in Cancun, Acapulco, Cabo San Lucas, Mexico City, or Puerto Vallarta? Don't we spend millions in Mexico each year?

America...boycott Mexico, Mexican products, Mexican restaurants run by Latinos. They are asking Americans to continue to harbor fugitives. An illegal immigrant is just that...he is ILLEGAL. He hasn't earned the right to live here freely. And he certainly doesn't have the right to endanger the lives of innocent people while they sleep.

God Bless the USA and all those here by legal means.

Impulse Control Disorders

2006-04-14T16:20:00.000-07:00

What is an Impulse Control Disorder?
Impulse Control Disorders are a specific group of impulsive behaviours that have been accepted as psychiatric disorders under the DSM-IV- TR . Although they have been grouped together in this diagnostic category, there are striking differences as well as similarities between these disorders.
An Impulse Control Disorder can be loosely defined as the failure to resist an impulsive act or behaviour that may be harmful to self or others. For purposes of this definition, an impulsive behaviour or act is considered to be one that is not premeditated or not considered in advance and one over which the individual has little or no control.
While anyone can be capable of impulsive behaviours and/or actions at any given point, this particular diagnosis is used when there is a mental health issue present. In many cases, the individual may have more than one formal psychiatric diagnosis.
The impulsive behaviours or actions refer to violent behavior, sexual behavior, gambling behaviour, fire starting, stealing, and self-abusive behaviors.
Categories of Impulse Control Disorders
There are six categories under this general diagnosis: Trichotillomania , Intermittent Explosive Disorder, Pathological Gambling, Kleptomania , Pyromania, and Not Otherwise Specified. The first five are the most prevalent and common Impulse Control Disorders.
The NOS category comprises a large number of less frequently occurring Impulse Control Disorders that do not fit in the above categories.
Medical vs Legal Distinction of Terms
It is important to distinguish between the the diagnosis of an Impulse Control Disorder and the impulsive act.
The diagnosis is a psychiatric condition. The act that results from the disorder is often a criminal behavior.
In the case involving repeated stealing, for example, Kleptomania and Shoplifting are sometimes used interchangeably but one is a medical diagnosis and the latter is a legal term for a criminal act. An individual who shoplifts does not necessarily have kleptomania.
Causes of Impulse Control Disorders / Co-Morbidity
Impulsive behavior seems to have an underlying pre-disposition which may or may not be related to existing mental health or medical conditions but research over the past decade has stressed the substantial co-morbidity of Impulse Control Disorders with mood disorders, anxiety disorders, eating disorders, substance abuse, personality disorders, and with other specific impulse control disorders.
In particular cases, it may be clinically difficult to disentangle from one another, with the result that the impulsivity at the core of the disorders is obscured.
Some disorders, such as compulsive buying, compulsive sexual behaviour, repetitive self mutilation appear to show considerable similarities with other more traditional impulse control disorders and indeed may be more common.
Traumatic Brain Injury may result in some individuals developing impulsive behaviours or Impulse Control Disorders. This is particularly true when the damage has been to the frontal cortex area. (further reading: Jentsch & Taylor, 1999)
Substance abuse appears to be commonly associated with impulsivity, although this is not included among the specific disorders of Impulse Control as defined in the DSM-IV-TR criteria for diagnosis of an Impulse Control Disorder. While not all individuals with substance abuse problems will exhibit or develop impulse control problems, research has noted a strong correlation between the two.
Moreover, researchers have observed that individuals who abuse multiple substances show more impulsive behaviour than who abuse single substances. (further reading: O’Boyle & Baratt, 1993).
Children with Conduct Disorders appear to be particularly susceptible to substance abuse in adulthood (Willcutt, Pennington, Chhabildas, Friedman and Alexander, 1999)
Some Major Mental Disorders are often associated with impulsivity while the individual is in a psychotic state. This is particularly true of Bipolar Disorder where the impulsive behaviour is most often associated with the manic phase.
Impulse Control Disorder are often present in a number of specific Personality Disorders, primarily borderline, anti-social, narcissistic, and histrionic. Impulsivity in the form of risk-tasking behaviours, sexual promiscuity, gestures and threats of self-harm and other attention-seeking behaviours. They are less prevalent in avoidant, dependant, obsessive compulsive personality and other disorder types .
Prevalence of Impulse Control DisordersPrevalence varies according to the particular ICD. See individual sections for details.
Impulse Control Disorder and Criminal BehaviourBy their very nature, some Impulse Control Disorders can result in illegal or criminal behavior. Ie. Shoplifting that may result from kleptomania is a criminal offence. or pyromania that results in setting fire that destroys property or harms others is a criminal act. At the other end of the spectrum are the ICDs, like trichotillomania, that may result in harm to the individual but not in criminal acts.Pathological gambling, while usually not a criminal act in itself, may escalate to the point where the individual must resort to illegal or criminal acts in order to support the behaviour. The presence of concurrent (eg. psychosis, major mental illness, some personality disorders, substance abuse) will increase the potential for dangerous, unpredictable and/or criminal behavior. This is particularly the case with Intermittent Explosive Disorder.
Treatment Although the specific category of impulse control disorders has become firmly entrenched in the DSM-IV-TR, strictly defined cases are nonetheless relatively uncommon with the result that there have not been many large scale studies of homogeneous populations. Clinicians widely appreciate, however, that these behavioural problems can cause significant stress for individuals and their families and justify further study and attempts at treatment.
Findings in recent research has led some researchers to suggest that impulse control disorders form part of “the affective spectrum” linked by some common neurochemical abnormality involving low brain serotonin levels (McElroy, Hudson, Pope, Keck and Aizley, 1992).
This interest in a possible neurochemical basis for impulsive behaviours leads clinicians to hope that newer pharmacological therapies may be soon available. As well, advances in Cognitive Behavioural Treatment suggest that a combination of pharmacotherapy and cognitive behavioural treatment may mutually enhance each other’s benefits.
Further Reading
Hucker, S.J. (2004) “Disorders of impulse control”. In: Forensic Psychology by O’Donohue, W. and Levensky, E. (eds), Academic Press.
Hucker, S.J. (1997). “Specific disorders of impulse control” In: Impulsivity: Perspectives, Principles & Practice by Webster, C.D. & Jackson, M. (eds.). New York: Guilford Press.Webster, C.D. & Jackson, M.A. (eds) (1997) . Impulsivity: Theory, assessment and treatment, Guilford.
Monopolis, S. & Lion, J. (1983). "Problems in the diagnosis of intermittent explosive disorder". American Journal of Psychiatry, 140, 1200-1202.
Studies Referred to in TextJentsch, J.D., Taylor J.R. (1999) Impulsivity resulting from frontostriatal dysfunction in drug abuse: implications for the control of behavior by reward-related stimuli. Psychopharmacology (Berl), 146: 373-390.McElroy, S., Hudson, S., Pope, H., Keck,P., & Aizley, H. The DSM-III-R impulse control disorders not elsewhere classified: Clinical characteristics and relationships to other psychiatric disorders. American Journal of Psychiatry, 149, 318-327.O’Boyle, M and Barratt, E.S.(1993) Impulsivity and DSM-III-R personality disorders. Personality and Individual Differences, 14, 609-611. Willcut, E.G., Pennington, B.F., Chhabildas, N.A., Friedman, M.C., Alexander,J.(1999) Psychiatric morbidity associated with DSM IV ADHD in a non-referred sample of twins. Journal of American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 38, 1355-1362.Winchell, R., (1992). Trichotillomania: Presentation and Treatment. Psychiatric Annals, 22, 84-89.
Other Resources:Therapy for Sexual Impulsivity: The Paraphilias and Paraphilia-Related Disorders. Martin Kafka, MD, Psychiatric Times (on-line)

Multiple Personalities

2005-10-06T14:37:00.000-07:00

Dissociative Identity Disorder(Multiple Personality Disorder)
A disorder characterized by two or more identities or personalities that alternatively take over the person's behavior.
Amnesia involving an inability to recall important personal information relating to some of the identities is present. Amnesia is not uniform in all personalities; what is not known by one personality may be known by another. Some personalities may appear to know and interact with other personalities in an elaborate inner world. For example, some personalities of which personality A is unaware may be aware of personality A and know what it does, as if observing its behavior. Others may be unaware of personality A or may be aware of personality A but lack co-consciousness (the simultaneous awareness of events by more than one personality) with personality A.
Dissociative identity disorder is serious and chronic and may lead to disability and incapacity. It is associated with a high incidence of suicide attempts and is believed to be more likely to end in suicide than any other mental disorder.
Several studies show that previously undiagnosed dissociative identity disorder is present in 3 to 4% of acute psychiatric inpatients and in a sizable minority of patients in psychoactive substance abuse treatment settings. It appears to be rather common, being diagnosed more frequently in recent years because of enhanced awareness of it, improved diagnostic methods, and increased awareness of childhood mistreatment and its consequences. Although some experts believe that increased reports of this disorder reflect the influence of physicians on suggestible patients, no firm evidence substantiates this view.
Etiology
Dissociative identity disorder is attributed to the interaction of several factors: overwhelming stress, dissociative capacity (including the ability to uncouple one's memories, perceptions, or identity from conscious awareness), the enlistment of steps in normal developmental processes as defenses, and, during childhood, the lack of sufficient nurturing and compassion in response to hurtful experiences or lack of protection against further overwhelming experiences. Children are not born with a sense of a unified identity--it develops from many sources and experiences. In overwhelmed children, its development is obstructed, and many parts of what should have blended into a relatively unified identity remain separate. North American studies show that 97 to 98% of adults with dissociative identity disorder report abuse during childhood and that abuse can be documented for 85% of adults and for 95% of children and adolescents with dissociative identity disorder and other closely related forms of dissociative disorder. Although these data establish childhood abuse as a major cause among North American patients (in some cultures, the consequences of war and disaster play a larger role), they do not mean that all such patients were abused or that all the abuses reported by patients with dissociative identity disorder really happened. Some aspects of some reported abuse experiences may prove to be inaccurate. Also, some patients have not been abused but have experienced an important early loss (such as death of a parent), serious medical illness, or other very stressful events. For example, a patient who required many hospitalizations and operations during childhood may have been severely overwhelmed but not abused.
Human development requires that children be able to integrate complicated and different types of information and experiences successfully. As children achieve cohesive, complex appreciations of themselves and others, they go through phases in which different perceptions and emotions are kept segregated. Each developmental phase may be used to generate different selves. Not every child who experiences abuse or major loss or trauma has the capacity to develop multiple personalities. Patients with dissociative identity disorder can be easily hypnotized. This capacity, closely related to the capacity to dissociate, is thought to be a factor in the development of the disorder. However, most children who have these capacities also have normal adaptive mechanisms, and most are sufficiently protected and soothed by adults to prevent development of dissociative identity disorder.
Symptoms and Signs
Patients often have a remarkable array of symptoms that can resemble other neurologic and psychiatric disorders, such as anxiety disorders, personality disorders, schizophrenic and mood psychoses, and seizure disorders. Most have symptoms of depression, manifestations of anxiety (sweating, rapid pulse, palpitations), phobias, panic attacks, physical symptoms, sexual dysfunction, eating disorders, and posttraumatic stress. Suicidal preoccupations and attempts are common, as are episodes of self-mutilation. Many have abused psychoactive substances at some time.
The switching of personalities and the amnesic barriers between them frequently result in chaotic lives. Because the personalities often interact with each other, patients with dissociative identity disorder often report hearing inner conversations and the voices of other personalities, which often comment on or address the patient. The voices are experienced as hallucinations.
Several symptoms are characteristic of dissociative identity disorder: fluctuating symptom pictures; fluctuating levels of function, from highly effective to disabled; severe headaches or other bodily pain; time distortions, time lapse, and amnesia; and depersonalization and derealization. Depersonalization refers to feeling unreal, removed from one's self, and detached from one's physical and mental processes. The patient feels like an observer of his life and may actually see himself as if he were watching a movie. Derealization refers to experiencing familiar persons and surroundings as if they were unfamiliar and strange or unreal.
Persons with dissociative identity disorder are often told of things they have done but do not remember and of notable changes in their behavior. They may discover objects, productions, or handwriting that they cannot account for or recognize; they may refer to themselves in the first person plural (we) or in the third person (he, she, they); and they may have amnesia for events that occurred between ages 6 and 11. Amnesia for earlier events is normal and widespread.
Because dissociative identity disorder tends to resemble other psychiatric disorders, patients typically give histories of having had three or more different psychiatric diagnoses and of prior treatment failure. As a group, they are very concerned with issues of control, both self-control and control of others.
Diagnosis
The diagnosis requires medical and psychiatric evaluation, including specific questions about dissociative phenomena. Under some circumstances, the psychiatrist may use prolonged interviews, hypnosis, or drug-facilitated interviews and may ask the patient to keep a journal between visits. All of these measures encourage a shift of personality states during the evaluation. Specially designed questionnaires can help identify patients with dissociative identity disorder.
The psychiatrist may attempt to contact and elicit other personalities by asking to speak to the part of the mind involved in behaviors for which the patient had amnesia or that were experienced in a depersonalized or derealized fashion.
Prognosis
Patients can be divided into three groups with regard to prognosis. Those in one group have mainly dissociative symptoms and posttraumatic features, generally function well, and generally recover completely with specific treatment. Those in another group have symptoms of other serious psychiatric disorders, such as personality disorders, mood disorders, eating disorders, and substance abuse disorders. They improve more slowly, and treatment may be either less successful or longer and more crisis-ridden. Patients in the third group not only have severe coexisting psychopathology but may also remain enmeshed with their alleged abusers. Treatment is often long and chaotic and aims to help reduce and relieve symptoms more than to achieve integration. Sometimes therapy helps a patient with a poorer prognosis make rapid strides toward recovery.
Treatment
Symptoms wax and wane spontaneously, but dissociative identity disorder does not resolve spontaneously. Drugs help manage specific symptoms but do not affect the disorder itself. All successful treatments that aim to achieve integration involve psychotherapy that specifically addresses the dissociative identity disorder. Some patients are unable or unwilling to pursue integration. For them, treatment aims to facilitate cooperation and collaboration among the personalities and to reduce symptoms. This treatment is often arduous and painful, and many crises tend to arise as a result of the personalities' actions and the patient's despair when dealing with traumatic memories. One or more periods of psychiatric hospitalization may be necessary to help some patients through difficult times and during the processing of particularly painful memories. Hypnosis is often used to help access the personalities, facilitate communication between them, and stabilize and interpret them. Hypnosis is also used to discuss traumatic memories and diffuse their impact. Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), applied cautiously, is a useful adjunct. EMDR tries to process traumatic memories and to replace negative thoughts about self that are associated with these memories with positive ones.
Generally, two or more psychotherapy sessions per week for 3 to >= 6 years are necessary to integrate the personalities or to achieve harmonious interaction among them that allows normal functioning without symptoms. Integration of the personalities is the most desirable outcome.
Psychotherapy has three main phases. In the first phase, the priority is safety, stabilization, and strengthening of the patient in anticipation of the difficult work of processing traumatic material and dealing with problematic personalities. The personality system is explored and mapped to plan the remainder of the treatment. In the second phase, the patient is helped to process the painful episodes of his past and to mourn the losses and other negative consequences of the trauma. As the reasons for the patient's remaining dissociations are addressed, therapy can move to the final phase, in which the patient's selves and relationships and social functioning can be reconnected, integrated, and rehabilitated. Some integration occurs spontaneously, but much must be encouraged by conversing with and arranging the unification of the personalities or must be facilitated with imagery and hypnotic suggestion. After integration, patients continue treatment to deal with some issues that have not been resolved. After postintegration treatment appears complete, visits to the therapist are tapered but are rarely completely terminated. Patients come to think of the psychiatrist as someone who can help them deal with psychologic issues, just as they periodically need assistance from a primary care physician.

Public Service Announcement

2005-09-23T11:43:00.000-07:00

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline’s mission is to provide immediate assistance to individuals in suicidal crisis by connecting them to the nearest available suicide prevention and mental health service provider through a toll-free telephone number: 1-800-273-TALK (8255). It is the only national suicide prevention and intervention telephone resource funded by the Federal Government. Find out more
What’s New
Hurricane Resources In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, and in anticipation of Hurricane Rita, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline would like to pass on information and resources that may be useful to crisis center staff and members of the public who might be concerned about persons reside in the Gulf Coast region. This document includes summary information on Lifeline centers, as well as general information for the public. Find out More.
The Lifeline Media Outreach Toolkit Is Now Available Online!Spread the word that mental health problems are treatable and help is available. This comprehensive toolkit provides you with everything you need to conduct a promotional campaign throughout the year as well as during mental health events. The toolkit includes media outreach materials, marketing materials, and partnership development materials. Find out more
Lifeline Radio Public Service Announcements Inform your community about the Lifeline with these radio public service announcements (PSAs). Send these scripts to the public service director at your local radio stations so that they can inform their listeners. Find out more

Anxiety Disorders

2005-09-20T13:55:00.000-07:00

Everybody knows what it's like to feel anxious -- the butterflies in your stomach before a first date, the tension you feel when your boss is angry, and the way your heart pounds if you're in danger. Anxiety rouses you to action. It gears you up to face a threatening situation. It makes you study harder for that exam, and keeps you on your toes when you're making a speech. In general, it helps you cope.

But if you have an anxiety disorder, this normally helpful emotion can do just the opposite -- it can keep you from coping and can disrupt your daily life. There are several types of anxiety disorders, each with their own distinct features.

An anxiety disorder may make you feel anxious most of the time, without any apparent reason. Or the anxious feelings may be so uncomfortable that to avoid them you may stop some everyday activities. Or you may have occasional bouts of anxiety so intense they terrify and immobilize you.

Anxiety disorders are the most common of all the mental health disorders. Considered in the category of anxiety disorders are: Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Panic Disorder, Agoraphobia, Social Phobia, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Specific Phobia, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, and Acute Stress Disorder. Anxiety disorders as a whole cost the United States between 42-46 billion dollars a year in direct and indirect healthcare costs, which is a third of the yearly total mental health bill of 148 billion dollars. In the United States, social phobia is the most common anxiety disorder with approximately 5.3 million people per year suffering from it.

Approximately 5.2 million people per year suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder. Estimates for panic disorder range between 3 to 6 million people per year, an anxiety disorder that twice as many women suffer from as men. Specific phobias affect more than 1 out of every 10 people with the prevalence for women being slightly higher than for men. Obsessive Compulsive disorder affects about every 2 to 3 people out of 100, with women and men being affected equally.

Many people still carry the misperception that anxiety disorders are a character flaw, a problem that happens because you are weak. They say, "Pull yourself up by your own bootstraps!" and "You just have a case of the nerves." Wishing the symptoms away does not work -- but there are treatments that can help. Anxiety disorders and panic attacks are not signs of a character flaw. Most importantly, feeling anxious is not your fault. It is a serious mood disorder, which affects a person's ability to function in every day activities. It affects one's work, one's family, and one's social life.

Today, much more is known about the causes and treatment of this mental health problem. We know that there are biological and psychological components to every anxiety disorder and that the best form of treatment is a combination of cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy interventions. Depending upon the severity of the anxiety, medication is used in combination with psychotherapy. Contrary to the popular misconceptions about anxiety disorders today, it is not a purely biochemical or medical disorder.
There are as many potential causes of anxiety disorders as there are people who suffer from them. Family history and genetics play a part in the greater likelihood of someone getting an anxiety disorder in their lifetime. Increased stress and inadequate coping mechanisms to deal with that stress may also contribute to anxiety. Anxiety symptoms can result from such a variety of factors including having had a traumatic experience, having to face major decisions in a one's life, or having developed a more fearful perspective on life. Anxiety caused by medications or substance or alcohol abuse is not typically recognized as an anxiety disorder.

Depression: Part III

2005-09-17T21:28:00.000-07:00

In-Patient Treatment

TEN QUESTIONS TO ASK ABOUT ANY INPATIENT TREATMENT PROGRAM

Sometimes mental health problems require hospitalization. This is a serious decision that should not be made without considering the following questions carefully:

1. Is an experienced medical doctor in charge?

2. Does the program provide a total treatment environment, including individual, group, and family therapy?

3. Is a fully qualified staff available, including psychiatrists, psychologists, nurses, and social workers?

4. Does the program use effective diagnostic and laboratory tests to help make correct diagnoses and to evaluate treatment?

5. Does the program provide for family sessions and counseling when necessary? If so, how many family sessions are there?

For child and adolescent hospital programs:

6. Does the program offer an accredited school and/or vocational training to prevent children and teens from falling behind in their schoolwork?

7. Are family members encouraged to visit?

8. Are support groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous encouraged?

9. Does the program provide well-defined aftercare through individual or group therapy?

10. How much does the program cost? Will your insurance cover all or part of the treatment, and for how long will your insurance continue?

Depression:Part II

2005-09-17T09:06:00.000-07:00

Treating Depression:

The American Psychiatric Association estimates that 80 to 90 percent of all depression can be treated. The first step is an accurate diagnosis. Along with a physical and lab tests to rule out causes such as reduced thyroid activity, a complete psychiatric history should be taken. And because depression and other major psychiatric problems are side effects of many medications, a good work-up will also include a review of the patient's medications and any illicit drug use.

Once a diagnosis is made, the basic medications used for depression today are:
Tricyclic antidepressants such as Elavil, Tofranil, and Pamelor are prescribed for patients who are in despair, feeling helpless, and unable to feel pleasure.

Serotonin uptake inhibitors such as Prozac, Paxil, and Effexor, all prescribed for uncomplicated depression.

Monoamine Oxidase (mao) Inhibitors like Nardil and Parnate: These medications are usually used when depressive symptoms are accompanied by symptoms of an anxiety disorder.

Lithium: This is the most effective drug for manic depression. However, it can also be used to prevent recurring episodes of depression.

When one of these medications is prescribed, follow-up and continued medical supervision are critical. Blood tests and other metabolic studies are often performed on a regular basis to determine the effect of the drug on the patient. This can be a drawn-out process, because most drugs for depression don't relieve symptoms instantly. Often it takes four to six weeks for a medication to become effective.

Other forms of therapy for depression include interpersonal psychotherapy to help broken relationships, cognitive behavioral therapy to help reverse the patient's negative view of himself and the world, and traditional psychoanalysis. Electroconvulsive therapy--known as ECT or shock therapy--has been used effectively in patients who cannot tolerate the side effects of today's medications, who cannot wait for the medications to work, or who are unable to take drugs for other reasons. While controversial, ECT has proved to be a good treatment option.

Next: In-patient Treatment

Depression: Part I

2005-09-16T14:24:00.000-07:00

Depression is not just "the blues." Depression is one of the most serious and common of all mental disorders. It is also one of the most treatable--provided the victim seeks treatment. At any time, more than nine million Americans may be suffering from depression. More than 15 percent of Americans are attacked by depression at some time in their lives.

While we've all felt sad at times, we usually get up, go to work, and try to overcome our general discouragement with life. But when these overwhelming feelings of sadness persist--even if for only a few weeks--you may be suffering from a clinical depression, which means you need some professional treatment. Besides a depressed mood or loss of pleasure, symptoms of clinical depression may include appetite and sleep changes, apathy, fatigue, hopelessness, guilt, loss of concentration, and thoughts of suicide.

There are two major kinds of depression: bipolar and unipolar. In bipolar depression, the patient rides a roller coaster of emotions from high to low, leading to the term "manic depression." Unipolar depression, also known as clinical or major depression, lacks bipolar's "highs."

Next: Treating Depression

The King of Neuroscience

2005-09-16T08:39:00.000-07:00

V.S. Ramachandran is Director of the Center for Brain and Cognition and professor with the Psychology Department and the Neurosciences Program at the University of California, San Diego, and Adjunct Professor of Biology at the Salk Institute. Ramachandran trained as a Physician and obtained an MD from Stanley Medical College and subsequently a PhD from Trinity College at the University of Cambridge, where he was elected a senior Rouse Ball Scholar. Ramachandran's early research was on visual perception but he is best known for his work in Neurology.
He has received many honours and awards including a fellowship from All Souls College, Oxford, an honorary doctorate from Connecticut College, a Gold medal from the Australian National University, the Ariens Kappers Medal from the Royal Nederlands Academy of Sciences, for landmark contributions in neuroscience and the presidential lecture award from the American Academy of Neurology. He is also a fellow of the Neurosciences Institute in La Jolla and a fellow of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Behavioral Sciences at Stanford. He was invited by the BBC to give the Reith lectures for 2003 ; and is the first physician/experimental psychologist to be given this honor since the series was begun by Bertrand Russel in 1949.
In 1995, he gave the Decade of the Brain Lecture at the 25th annual (Silver Jubilee) meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and more recently, the Inaugural keynote lecture at the Decade of the brain conference held by NIMH at the Library of Congress and a public lecture at the Getty museum in Los Angeles. He also gave the first Hans Lucas Teuber lecture at MIT, the D.O Hebb lecture at McGill, The Rudel-Moses lecture at Columbia, The Dorcas Cumming (inaugural keynote) lecture at Cold Spring Harbor, the Raymond Adams neurology grand rounds at Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard, and the Jonas Salk memorial lecture, Salk Institute.
Ramachandran is a trustee for the San Diego museum of art and has lectured widely on art, visual perception and the brain. Ramachandran has published over 120 papers in scientific journals (including three invited review articles in the Scientific American), is Editor-in-chief of the Encyclopedia of Human Behaviour and author of the critically acclaimed book "Phantoms in the Brain” that has been translated into eight languages and formed the basis for a two part series on Channel Four TV UK and a 1 hr PBS special in USA. His work is featured frequently in the major news media including BBC, and PBS and NEWSWEEK magazine recently named him a member of "The Century Club", one of the "hundred most prominent people to watch in the next century."
Recent News
1) Gave the 2003 BBC Reith lectures. (Reviews attached) – These lectures have now been published by BBC/Profile books “The Emerging Mind”
2) Elected a member of the National Academy of Sciences (India)3) Awarded the Chancellors award for excellence in research, University of California
4) Invited to give the Rabindranath Tagore lecture (New Delhi, India)
copyright 2002 - all rights reserved

Paris Hilton??

2005-09-15T16:26:00.000-07:00

Histrionic Personality Disorder....People with this disorder have established a pattern of excessive drama, and drawing attention to themselves. The behavior is established in early adulthood. The condition is indicated by a combination of the following behaviors;

Must be the center of attention.
Displays inappropriate sexually provocative behavior.
Expressions of emotions that are shallow and unbelievable.
Come across as fakes and phonies.
Great emphasis on physical appearance to attract attention.
Theatrical, exaggerates, and uses speech that is vague and lacking in detail.
Easily swayed by others.
Considers friendships and relationships to be far more intimate than they are.
People with the condition do not generally appear for treatment unless the "wheels have fallen off", or the behavior is severely limiting their ability to operate in a self supporting way. Because they are so needy, they are reluctant to cut off the therapy since they have a captive audience.
Psychotherapy is the chosen route, generally on a one to one basis, since the group environment may just accentuate the behavior that creates the problem in the first place.
Establishing good rapport and trust is important, but avoiding a dependent situation with a needy patient is also important. Therapy should emphasize that the goal is not to cure, but rather to alleviate the worst elements of the behavior that is causing the problem.
Suicidal behavior is often present with this condition and threats should be taken seriously.
The gross exaggerations should be met with some skepticism, by attempting to take a histrionic presentment to it illogical conclusion, and involving the person in their own unrealistic fears, anxieties, and expectations.
Deep cognitive approaches are not particularly helpful since people with condition have little ability to examine unconscious motives to a extent that is helpful.
Rather, helping a client view interaction objectively with a view to alternative explanations for behavior and events can be effective. Exploring emotions can also be helpful.

Parkinson's Disease

2005-09-15T07:36:00.000-07:00

This if for a great friend of mine who is battling from late stage Parkinson's Disease.

What is Parkinson's Disease?
Parkinson's disease (PD) belongs to a group of conditions called motor system disorders, which are the result of the loss of dopamine-producing brain cells. The four primary symptoms of PD are tremor, or trembling in hands, arms, legs, jaw, and face; rigidity, or stiffness of the limbs and trunk; bradykinesia, or slowness of movement; and postural instability, or impaired balance and coordination. As these symptoms become more pronounced, patients may have difficulty walking, talking, or completing other simple tasks. PD usually affects people over the age of 50. Early symptoms of PD are subtle and occur gradually. In some people the disease progresses more quickly than in others. As the disease progresses, the shaking, or tremor, which affects the majority of PD patients may begin to interfere with daily activities. Other symptoms may include depression and other emotional changes; difficulty in swallowing, chewing, and speaking; urinary problems or constipation; skin problems; and sleep disruptions. There are no blood or laboratory tests available to diagnose PD.
Is there any treatment?

At present, there is no cure for PD, but a variety of medications provide dramatic relief from the symptoms. Usually, patients are given levodopa combined with carbidopa. Carbidopa delays the conversion of levodopa into dopamine until it reaches the brain. Nerve cells can use levodopa to make dopamine and replenish the brain's dwindling supply. Although levodopa helps at least three-quarters of parkinsonian cases, not all symptoms respond equally to the drug. Bradykinesia and rigidity respond best, while tremor may be only marginally reduced. Problems with balance and other symptoms may not be alleviated at all. Anticholinergics may help control tremor and rigidity. Other drugs, such as bromocriptine, pergolide, pramipexole, and ropinirole, mimic the role of dopamine in the brain, causing the neurons to react as they would to dopamine. An antiviral drug, amantadine, also appears to reduce symptoms.
In some cases, surgery may be appropriate if the disease doesn't respond to drugs. A therapy called deep brain stimulation (DBS) has now been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. In DBS, electrodes are implanted into the brain and connected to a small electrical device called a pulse generator that can be externally programmed. DBS can reduce the need for levodopa and related drugs, which in turn decreases the involuntary movements called dyskinesias that are a common side effect of levodopa. It also helps to alleviate fluctuations of symptoms and to reduce tremors, slowness of movements, and gait problems. DBS requires careful programming of the stimulator device in order to work correctly.
What is the prognosis?
PD is both chronic, meaning it persists over a long period of time, and progressive, meaning its symptoms grow worse over time. Although some people become severely disabled, others experience only minor motor disruptions. Tremor is the major symptom for some patients, while for others tremor is only a minor complaint and other symptoms are more troublesome. No one can predict which symptoms will affect an individual patient, and the intensity of the symptoms also varies from person to person.
What research is being done?
The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) conducts PD research in laboratories at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and also supports additional research through grants to major medical institutions across the country. Current research programs funded by the NINDS are using animal models to study how the disease progresses and to develop new drug therapies. Scientists looking for the cause of PD continue to search for possible environmental factors, such as toxins, that may trigger the disorder, and study genetic factors to determine how defective genes play a role. Other scientists are working to develop new protective drugs that can delay, prevent, or reverse the disease. More information about Parkinson's Disease research is available at http://www.ninds.nih.gov/funding/research/parkinsonsweb/index.htm

Coping with the aftermath: a mental health perspective

2005-09-14T10:25:00.000-07:00

The following is from the National Institute of Mental Health for those coping with this national tragedy. Godspeed to all...

Coping with Hurricane Katrina
Update from the DirectorThomas R. Insel, M.D.Director, NIMH
Managing the Aftermath
The initial response to a disaster like Hurricane Katrina rightly focuses on meeting the immediate material needs of survivors. As the nation addresses those needs, it must also prepare to meet the often acute emotional needs of both survivors and responders.
Relief workers can promote mental health by creating and sustaining an environment of safety, calm, connectedness to others, self-empowerment, and hopefulness. Workers should:
Help people meet basic needs for food and shelter, and obtain emergency medical attention
Provide repeated, simple, and accurate information on how to obtain these services
Listen to people who wish to share their stories and emotions and withhold judgment
Be friendly and compassionate even if people are being difficult
Provide accurate information about the disaster and the relief efforts
Help people contact friends or loved-ones
Keep families together; keep children with parents or other close relatives whenever possible
Give practical suggestions that steer people toward helping themselves
If you know that more help and services are on the way, remind people of this when they express fear or worry
We also know there are things to avoid doing, such as:
Forcing people to share their stories with you, especially very personal details (this may decrease calm in people who are not ready to share their experiences)
Telling people what you think they should be feeling, thinking, or doing now or how they should have acted earlier
Making promises that may not be kept (broken promises decrease hope)
Criticizing existing services or relief activities in front of people in need of these services (this may decrease hope or calm)
Looking to Recovery
It's very important to acknowledge that people often experience strong and unpleasant emotional and physical responses to disasters. Reactions may include combinations of hopelessness, helplessness, depression, sleeplessness, anxiousness, physical pain, confusion, fear, anger, grief, shock, guilt, mistrust of others, and loss of confidence in self or others. If these reactions last for more than a month, however, then a person may have Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
PTSD is a sometimes debilitating mental health disorder that typically develops in a small percentage of people after exposure to an event in which grave physical harm occurred or was threatened. People with PTSD may repeatedly re-experience a traumatic event through flashback episodes, nightmares, or frightening and intrusive thoughts, especially when something reminds them of the trauma.
PTSD is not a condition that is merely "in people's heads": we know from research that the biological response to danger or threats — the so-called "fight or flight" response — malfunctions in people with PTSD, leaving them unable to turn off the intense emotional and physical sensations. They feel they are in danger even after it has passed.
The good news is that researchers — supported by NIMH, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and other agencies — have developed effective treatments for PTSD. These include medications and cognitive and behavioral psychosocial treatments — talk therapies that teach people to manage upsetting and unwanted thoughts as well as physical symptoms.
NIMH urges its constituents — researchers, mental health providers, advocates, and the general public — to consider how they can aid Hurricane Katrina survivors and responders.

A Moral Dilemna

2005-09-14T06:13:00.000-07:00

What would you do?

Scenario...your loved has been dealing with the devastating consequences of Alzheimer's Disease which has almost completely robbed them of their cognitive functions, leaving them totally disabled and has driven you, their caregiver, to the end of your wits. Finally a new medicine is approved by the FDA which may improve the sufferer's cognition significally and even lengthen the life expectancy of your friend/family member. The down side of this is argued somewhat passionately and certainly understandably that this new Rx therapy only postpones the already inevitable.

Who should decide? The caregivers? The patient? The healthcare professionals? Should Advance Directives be used? Send me a comment with your perspectives.

In the meantime, I've got two exams today.

Continue to support the Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. HELPNOW

2005-09-13T13:17:00.000-07:00

News for the caregivers/patients of Alzheimer's Disease

Namenda (Memantine) is was approved in October 2003 by the FDA. It is the first Alzheimer drug of this type approved in the United States. Memantine is classified as a N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist. It is called a glutaminergic agent.
Uses for Namenda
*Namenda is a drug treatment approved for moderate to severe Alzheimer’s disease.
*In those who respond to the drug, improvement is seen in cognitive and behavioral functions and in day to day living skills.
*Improvement, if it does occur, may be very small indeed
*The drug does not cure Alzheimer's disease
*It does not protect brain cells from further damage.
*There is no evidence that Namenda works long term.
*Improvements, if any, should be seen within a few weeks
How Namenda Works
Put in simple terms this drug seems to acts on another neurotransmitter (a transmitter of nerve messages) called glutamate. The drug shields the brain from overexposure to glutamate. Glutamate contributes to the death of brain cells in people with Alzheimer’s and Namenda has been shown to protect the neurons from its toxic effects.
What is Glutamate?
When researchers look at the brains of people with Alzheimer's they find that there is extensive loss of the NMDA receptor sites. Glutamate is a messenger chemical (a neurotransmitter) that is involved in storage, retrieval and processing of information. Glutamate triggers NMDA receptors that control the amount of calcium that passes into a nerve cell. It is this that allows information to be stored. When there is too much glutamate, too much calcium moves into the cell and memory functions are adversly affected.
Dosage
Namenda is produced by Merz and co., Germany. The recommended dosage starts at 5mg once a day. The dose is gradually increased to 10mgs twice a day. (Total dose 20mgs)
Side Effects
Most common side effects of this drug are dizziness, confusion, constipation, headaches and skin rash.
Less common side effects are fatigue, back pain, high blood pressure, insomnia, hallucinations, vomiting and shortness of breath.
There are no serious reported side effects.
Drug Interactions Interaction with amantadine, dextromethorphan and ketamine. May interfere with drug levels of diaretics, ulcer drugs and quinidine.
Medical Supervision
It is important that drugs to treat Alzheimer's are prescribed by specialists in dementia. The effectiveness needs to be regularly assessed, it is suggested, every 3 months. The drug can be used long term. It can be discontinued if there is no response
Cost Costs vary depending on the source of the drug.
The maker of this drug provides further information at www.namenda.com or by calling 1.877.2-NAMENDA (1.877.262.6363).

For more information on Alzheimer's click here

2005-09-13T09:46:00.000-07:00

What Is Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder?

Worries, doubts, superstitious beliefs all are common in everyday life. However, when they become so excessive such as hours of hand washing or make no sense at all such as driving around and around the block to check that an accident didn't occur then a diagnosis of OCD is made. In OCD, it is as though the brain gets stuck on a particular thought or urge and just can't let go. People with OCD often say the symptoms feel like a case of mental hiccups that won't go away. OCD is a medical brain disorder that causes problems in information processing. It is not your fault or the result of a "weak" or unstable personality.

Before the arrival of modern medications and cognitive behavior therapy, OCD was generally thought to be untreatable. Most people with OCD continued to suffer, despite years of ineffective psychotherapy. Today, luckily, treatment can help most people with OCD. Although OCD is usually completely curable only in some individuals, most people achieve meaningful and long-term symptom relief with comprehensive treatment.

For more info click here

2005-09-12T17:28:00.000-07:00

What do Psychologists say to each other when they meet?" "You're fine, how am I? "

How many psychologists does it take to change a light bulb? Just one, but the bulb will have to be ready to change.

When I first started college, the Dean came in and said "Good Morning" to all of us. When we echoed back to him, he responded "Ah, you're Freshmen."
He explained. "When you walk in and say good morning, and they say good morning back, it's Freshmen. When they put their newspapers down and open their books, it's Sophomores. When they look up so they can see the instructor over the tops of the newspapers, it's juniors. When they put their feet up on the desks and keep reading, it's seniors."
"When you walk in and say good morning, and they write it down, it's graduate students."

Roses are red/Violets are blue/I have MPD- And so do I

* Say the word "20" (Twenty), twenty times.... (twenty,twenty,twenty...so on)
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20.... are you done?
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-QUICK!!! NAME A VEGETABLE! don't think too hard. what is the first thing that comes to your mind?
-
-
-
-Was it CARROTS? (freaky isn't it?)
* Adapted from a psychology course @ Columbia University...
DID IT WORK FOR YOU? if it didn't, you are one WEIRD guy...

2005-09-12T07:33:00.000-07:00

Good Monday morning, though I haven't decided what's so good about it, yet. After racking my brain until about 2 am prepping for my exams, I found that no matter what I did, I just couldn't get to sleep. So, here I am posting this blog from my Work/Study job on campus and wishing to God Almighty that I didn't have a Chem class in 20 minutes...wait 18 minutes. Any wise words this morning???

You can check out my RSS feed for the latest from My Freudian Slip. Stay tuned, coming up in a few weeks I will begin airing a LIVE PODCAST at 8 pm Mon-Fri. My launch date is (hopefully!!) October 3rd, 2005.

In the meantime, you'll just have to hang out and read me here.

Have a wonderful Monday fellow bloggers-in-kind!

13 minutes to Chemistry!!!

Bye

2005-09-11T19:06:00.000-07:00

Schizophrenia...

According the US Surgeon's General Office, here are some of the causes of schizophrenia.
The onset and course of schizophrenia are most likely the result of an interaction between genetic and environmental influences.
Family, twin, and adoption studies support the role of genetic influences in schizophrenia. Immediate biological relatives of people with schizophrenia have about 10 times greater risk than that of the general population. Given prevalence estimates, this translates into a 5 to 10 percent lifetime risk for first-degree relatives (including children and siblings) and suggests a substantial genetic component to schizophrenia. What also bolsters a genetic role are findings that the identical twin of a person with schizophrenia is at greater risk than a sibling or fraternal twin, and that adoptive relatives do not share the increased risk of biological relatives (see Figure 4-3). However, in about 40 percent of identical twins in which one is diagnosed with schizophrenia, the other never meets the diagnostic criteria. The discordance among identical twins clearly indicates that environmental factors likely also play a role (DSM-IV).

For more click here

2005-09-11T17:14:00.000-07:00

Japan's new bone phone !!! Japanese telecom carriers, pioneers of internet-capable and picture-snapping handsets, have now come up with the world's first mobile phone that enables users to listen to calls inside their heads - by conducting sound through bone.

2005-09-11T15:47:00.000-07:00

NEWS!!! From Medical News Today Johns Hopkins researchers have discovered a discrete region of the monkey brain that processes pitch, the relative high and low points of sound, by recognizing a single musical note played by different instruments... click link for more info.